Transfer portal: Bowling Green guard Marcus Hill breaks down NC State official visit
NC State has been busy in the transfer portal, gaining three commitments this month, and the Wolfpack hosted Bowling Green guard Marcus Hill for an official visit earlier this week.
Hill, a first-team All-MAC selection this past season, had a positive experience during his visit to Raleigh.
“I really liked it,” Hill told TheWolfpacker.com on Wednesday. “It really felt like it was good vibes. The coaches had good vibes, good laughs, great conversations. It really felt like family.”
That family atmosphere is something that was important to Hill going into his visit.
“I’m trying to be family with the coaching staff,” Hill said. “And being wanted to be there, the coaches wanting me there and to help me — that’s really big for me. I don’t really need much, I just want to feel like family and able to get along with my teammates and have a good time.”
Hill, who was fifth all-time for single-season points at Bowling Green this past season with 698, seemed to enjoy his visit to NC State.
Although the guard is a hot commodity in the transfer portal with more than a dozen schools interested in his services, Hill appeared to like NC State’s approach at recruiting him. Wolfpack head coach Kevin Keatts has taken a central role in the process, along with assistant Kareem Richardson.
But Keatts’ interest in Hill, a 6-foot-4 guard, checked a key box in his recruitment.
“That shows that he really wants me,” Hill said of Keatts. “That’s what I wanted to see from the portal, who really, really wants me from the head coaches. They make the decision not the assistant coach. At the end of the day, the head coach makes the decision.”
While Keatts has taken the driver’s seat throughout the portal process, this is not the first time Hill had seen NC State. He said he kept a keen eye on the Wolfpack over the past couple seasons with the way Keatts’ offensive system allows guards to play.
Hill, who averaged 20.5 points on 44.4% shooting from the field, was intrigued by the Wolfpack’s guard play under Keatts through the years.
“I always watched them because of their guards,” Hill said. “Coach Keatts lets his guards play, so I always watched them. Once they started winning in the ACC Tournament, I watched the games more. I really like their game. I’m really liking it.”
What does that mean for a guard like Hill, who likes to get to the basket but can also knock down pull up jumpers?
“That gives you happiness seeing that I can play freely,” Hill said. “I don’t have to look over my shoulder if I miss a shot or make a turnover. Coach Keatts would just have my back.”
While he brings an elite ability to score the basketball, Hill knows that Keatts’ system requires players to give their full effort on the defensive end.
That will not be an issue for Hill if he were to commit to NC State.
“At the start of MAC play, I was guarding everybody’s best player,” Hill said. “I know I can be great. I love to play defense, I love to stop best players. I love to get stops for the team.”
NC State was Hill’s first visit of the transfer portal cycle. Though he has only seen one school in person, Hill said he is getting close to making a decision.
“I’m probably going to commit soon,” Hill said.
The Wolfpack has one available scholarship remaining for the 2024-25 season.
Background on Hill
Before Hill starred at Bowling Green, scoring in double figures in 31 of the Falcons’ 34 games this past year, he spent two seasons at Southern Union State Community College.
And it was there where he blossomed into a high-level scorer. Hill averaged 26.0 points, the third-best mark among all junior college players, on 49.7% shooting from the field during his sophomore year. He added 3.9 assists a game during that campaign.
“I was just playing the game to help my team win [at first],” Hill said.“But they were telling me I had to be more aggressive. … Once I hit my sophomore year in JUCO, that’s when I started being really aggressive, learning I can really score the ball with the best.”
He led junior college players in field goals made (301) and total points (780) before he arrived at Bowling Green.
But when he got to the Division I level, Hill learned he needed to pace himself on the floor.
“In JUCO, you can go 100 miles per hour and you can try to score,” Hill said. “At Bowling Green, it was a lot more scouting, you have to have pace with your game. You can go 100, but not every time. Maybe you can go 75 — change your pace.”
Hill adjusted well and became the Falcon’s leader on the floor. Now, he is a key transfer portal target for many high-major programs, including NC State.
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